The Marvelous Adventures of Magpie Part 1
by thegriffin88
Summary: This is a tale of love, loss, recovery, redemption and, finally, some semblance of romance. This is not your ordinary fan-fiction.
1. Prologue

The Marvelous Adventures of Magpie Part 1

Prologue

"_This is a story about magic and where it goes and perhaps more importantly where it comes from and why, although it doesn't pretend to answer all or any of these questions…Because this is also a story about sex, although probably not in the athletic, tumbling, count-the-legs-and-divide-by-two sense unless the characters get totally beyond the author's control. They might."-Terry Pratchett_

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><p>"I'm thinking of leaving you know."<p>

Oromis looked up from his book, a bit startled at his friend's sudden revelation.

"Whatever for?" he asked.

Magpie picked at a loose feather on her wing, she was beginning to molt for the season.

"I'm not welcome here, even you don't agree with what I'm doing. I rather think I'll be better off in Terim."

Oromis looked over at Glaedr who just let loose a puff of smoke as a response.

"Well I'm just curious about your…appearance. I don't think that the people in Terim will overlook a Feather." he replied.

"I could just use a spell. You know I've got loads of energy saved up in the moonstone and my gems. It's not like I'd keep it active all day either; only when I had to go outdoors or meet people." Magpie replied as she watched the downy feather float away on a soft breeze.

"You've certainly thought about this." her friend replied.

"That's because I'm certainly thinking about going. I know you and the others don't agree with me and, frankly, I think I've rather outstayed my welcome."

_"Well you are researching how to resurrect the dead. Ignoring the obvious flaws with your spellwork it would be a crime against nature."_ Glaedr grumbled.

Magpie eyed the surly dragon.

"If you lost Oromis you'd try everything within your power to bring him back would you not?" she growled.

"That's enough from both of you." Oromis said, stopping yet another argument between them, arguments that usually ended with him having to put out small fires.

"Hmpf," Magpie huffed, turning back to Oromis, "anyway you can get him to fly you to Terim right? You can come visit me anytime you like. Perhaps Liam will even be there."

Rider and dragon inwardly cringed.

"Well, if your heart truly is set on going, I cannot stop you." Oromis conceded.

Magpie smiled.

The downy feather that had been floating through the air landed on Glaedr's snout and he gave a snort, incinerating it in a flash of fire.

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><p>Ah, a new attempt at an old story. I knew the content was good, or, at least, wouldn't leave me alone. You know how these things are.<p> 


	2. Home

Home

"_One moment ten thousand years; ten thousand years one moment."-Buddha_

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><p>Magpie raced through the forest on Cloudspeed, her avquid, she was back for the first time in...lifetimes it dawned on her. Six years had passed for her before she was allowed to return home. Magpie had been a traveler, sent by the wind god Rhuk to protect the souls of the strong in worlds far beyond hers. But now, after years of work and traveling, she was home; and the first thing she had to do was see an old friend.<p>

She knew she was tripping all the alarms and wards the Elves had placed amongst the trees, but that was part of her plan, the only way to signal the person she most desired to meet again. She pulled her wings closer to her body and hunched down as Cloudspeed ducked under a low hanging branch. Magpie tugged sharply on the reins and veered her feathered mount to the left, leaping over a small brook and continuing onwards. At last she heard a roar and felt someone pressing against her mind.

_"No my dear I'm afraid you'll have to meet me on the ground if you want to talk." _she shot back before skidding out into a clearing.

Cloudspeed whinnied and stamped his scaly paws on the ground. It was mere moments before Magpie heard the wing beats signaling her friend's arrival. She looked up at the sky, shielding her eyes against the golden glare that soon blocked out the sun. She smirked as Glaedr landed and his rider dismounted. But her smirk turned to a gasp of horror as she saw that the great golden dragon was missing his left leg.

"Glaedr! Oromis! What-?" she gasped, dismounting as fast as she could and running towards them, her talons sinking into the mossy ground.

Oromis turned to face her, wearing a grim expression.

"Magpie…I truly didn't think I'd ever see you again." he said. "So much has happened since you disappeared."

_"Mere moments are days in the ebb and flow of time. You have spent six years in service, but in your homeworld six seconds, six days, six centuries may have passed already. Be prepared hatchling."_ Rhuk's voiced echoed in her brain.

"How long was I gone?" Magpie asked tentatively.

Oromis shook his head and walked back over to Glaedr.

"Not here, you'll need to sit down for the tales we have to tell."

Magpie looked up at Glaedr, who only blinked one of his molten gold orbs at her before unfurling his wings and leaping to the air. With a heavy sigh she tromped back over to Cloudspeed and raced off after them.

**At the Crags of Tel'nae****í****r…**

_"I do hope he hurries back, every second we sit here is a second wasted." _Eragon thought worriedly.

_"Someone being able to pass through the forest like that is as good a reason as any to rush off; I hope it isn't any of Galbatorix's men." _Saphira replied.

Eragon frowned, hoping with all his heart it wasn't. Oromis had taken off in a hurry, just barely throwing a saddle onto Glaedr's back before taking off after the mysterious intruder had tripped just about every alarm in the forest.

A few more tense moments passed before Glaedr landed with a great thump. Oromis slid off his back and undid the saddle straps before taking back his seat at the table, he seemed haggard.

"Master! Master what-?" Eragon began.

"Give her a moment." Oromis said.

Then, crashing through the trees, came the strangest women Eragon had ever seen, riding the strangest horse he had ever seen.

The woman looked human, although her features we slightly angular like an elf, but her most startling feature was the two grey and black wings sprouting from her back; and instead of feet she had talons and feathers like some sort of bird of prey, on each of her ankles was a plain brass bracelet, it didn't seem to be magical. The horse was covered in white feathers and instead of hooves had strange feet like some sort of strange mix between reptile and bird, scaled with three stubby toes.

"Alright Oromis you are going to tell me just what in the blazes is going on or else I'll-!" she shouted.

"Please my dear, calm yourself, why don't you take a seat and say hello to my students."

_"My dear?"_ Eragon and Saphira thought in unison.

The bird woman scowled and looked at Eragon and Saphira critically.

"Hmpf, greetings to you, I am Magpie, a Feather from the Far Eastern land of Uran. That," she pointed to the horse, "is Cloudspeed, my Avquid."

"Uh, greetings Magpie, I'm Eragon and this is Saphira." Eragon said, faltering a little if only because he was so taken aback by Magpie's curtness.

"You elves and your formalities, it's a wonder you get anything done. Good thing whatever God watches you gave you long-life." Magpie huffed, taking a seat, "I've said hello so tell me what in the blue blazes happened to you!"

Oromis sighed before beginning to explain to his long absent friend what had been happening in the near past century, with Glaedr chiming in every once in a while when the elf forgot something. When he was done, Magpie had no change in expression. She calmly sat forward and breathed,

"I should kill you right where you stand."

Eragon and Saphira moved to defend their masters but Oromis held up a hand.

"And why is that my dear?" he asked.

"For getting yourself into this mess!" Magpie barked.

"I can do a great many things Magpie but seeing the future certainly is not one of them!" Oromis countered.

It was the first time Eragon had seen his master get even close to flustered.

"You are…you have…I should have…Glaedr is missing a leg!" Magpie burst out.

_I have three more. _The great golden dragon snorted.

Magpie looked around, clearly frustrated.

"Fine then, I'll be sleeping on your floor tonight." she said.

"This is something non-negotiable, am I correct?" Oromis replied with his usual cool.

"Yes." Magpie hissed, her feathers rustling.

"Very well then. Why don't you follow me inside, I have a soup that needs tending to."

Magpie clacked her dexterous talons together before following her old friend inside the hut. She had known Oromis long enough to know that asking her to help him was code for 'we need to talk privately'; either that or he considered her more a family member than a guest but Magpie dismissed that thought immediately.

Once inside the hut she rounded on him.

"I know what you have!" she nearly shouted.

Oromis simply cocked an elegant eyebrow and continued stirring the pot.

"Oh don't bloody ignore me! I know why you have those tremors." Magpie continued.

That caused Oromis to pause.

"Glaedr said it wasn't something done to you by those fiends, it was something you had in you all along correct? But it hadn't manifested itself until you cast that spell and overtaxed yourself."

"Magpie what are you getting at?" Oromis said, and Magpie could hear traces of anger in his voice, his mask of cool was cracking like so much thin ice.

"In other worlds they call it 'Epilepsy', and it causes such seizures when pushing one's self beyond his limits. I..." she hung her head, her wavy brown hair obscuring her face, "Medicine, they have medicine on other worlds that helps this, that stops the tremors…I should have brought some."

To her surprise and anger Oromis chuckled.

"My dear Magpie, how in the world, or 'worlds' in this case, could you have possibly have had the foresight to bring medicine for a condition you didn't know I had until just a few moments ago? Really, are all Feathers so ridiculously guilty for the world?"

Magpie huffed and fluffed her feathers, she felt like smacking him upside the head.

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><p>Guilt is not an uncommon thing for Travelers to experience when they return home, especially if they have been to a world more advanced than the one they came from.<p> 


	3. The Forgotten Mistake

The Forgotten Mistake

_"I have been Foolish and Deluded," said he, "and I am a Bear of No Brain at All."-Winne-the-Pooh_

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><p>It was over dinner that Magpie explained to Oromis and Glaedr exactly what she had been up to this past century. Oromis was surprised to hear of her tales, although he didn't show it.<p>

"I did come looking for you, you know." he said, "Glaedr and I flew to Terim a month after you had left but there was no sign of you."

"The wind god Rhuk had already summoned me." Magpie smiled. "Such glorious battles I fought in the world beyond this one." then she frowned, "and to come back to find my home ravaged, my friends hurt beyond healing. I suppose this is the final battle." she sighed.

Oromis said nothing, but Eragon could tell something passed between them, and it had nothing to with telepathy.

"Well then, your time here is limited Eragon and I've already spent too much of it running off to fetch Magpie. There is still much to discuss. Shall I guess which subject you would like to address next or will you tell me?"

"The two times we have fought Murtagh and Thorn, Murtagh has been more powerful than any human ought to be. On the Burning Plains, he defeated Saphira and me because we did not realize how strong he was. If not for his change of heart, we would be prisoners in Urû'baen right now. You once mentioned that you know how Galbatorix has become so powerful. Will you tell us now, Master? For our own safety, we need to know."

The young rider's gaze flicked towards Magpie, unsure if she had the privilege to such sensitive information.

"It is not my place to tell you this," said Oromis.

"Then whose is it?" demanded Eragon. "You can't-"

Behind Oromis Glaedr opened one of his molten eyes, which was as large as a round shield, and said, _It is mine…The source of Galbatorix's power lies in the hearts of dragons. From us, he steals his strength. Without our aid, Galbatorix would have fallen to the elves and the Varden long ago._

Eragon frowned, and Magpie bit into an apple.

"I don't understand. Why would you help Galbatorix? And how could you? There are only four dragons and an egg left in Alagaësia…aren't there?"

_Many of the dragons whose bodies Galbatorix and the Forsworn slew are still alive today._

"Still alive….?" Bewildered, Eragon glanced at Oromis, but the elf remained quiet, he and Magpie seemed to be locked in silent conversation. Even more disconcerting was that Saphira did not seem to share Eragon's confusion.

The gold dragon turned his head on his paws to better look at Eragon, his scales scraping against one another. _Unlike with most creatures, _he said, _a dragon's consciousness does not reside solely within our skulls. There is in our chests a hard, gemlike object, similar in composistion to our scales, called the Eldunar__í__, which means "the heart of hearts." When a dragon hatches, their Eldunar__í is clear and lusterless. Usually, it remains so all through a dragon's life and dissolves along with the dragon's corpse when they die. However, if we wish, we can transfer our consciousness to the __Eldunar__í. Then it will acquire the same color as our scales and begin to glow like a coal. If a dragon has done this, the __Eldunar__í will outlast the decay of their flesh, and a dragon's essence may live on indefinitely. Also, a dragon can disgorge their __Eldunar__í while they are still alive. By this means, a dragon's body and a dragon's consciousness can exist separately but still be linked, which can be most useful in certain circumstances. But to do this exposes us to great danger, for whosoever holds our __Eldunar__í holds our very soul in their hands. With it, they could force us to do their bidding, no matter how vile._

There was a loud cough and everyone turned to Magpie who had begun choking on her apple. She spat out a bit of it and breathed deep.

"That rotten old feather duster! I knew there was a reason he had dumped me here!" she screeched at the sky.

"What is it now?" Oromis asked.

Magpie turned on him, a wild look in her eyes.

"I…your…" she hung her head, "This is all my fault."

Oromis refilled his goblet with wine. "Go on." he said.

"When I was in Terim, researching how to bring Liam back I … made some notes, notes pertaining to an old myth about the god Rhuk. We Feathers say that Rhuk keeps his soul in a pearl which, depending on the version, is either kept within his paws as he travels the skies or hidden somewhere for no one to find. I used that legend to form an idea, and you know how ideas never die, this idea was that I could store the soul of a still living creature, or person, inside a gem. Perhaps even use it as a power source, a never ending supply of energy!" she bit her lip, "That's where Galbatorix got the idea!"

"Oh please," Oromis said, clearly exasperated, "you really must stop all this guilt. Galbatorix-"

"Came to me!" Magpie half shouted, "You showed me what he looks like Oromis! He came to my lab in Terim! I didn't know who he was at the time, I was so busy with research that I just handed him my notes." she slumped, "The notes were only half an idea based on Rhuk's Pearl, and in those notes I talked about ways to combine the energy from many such 'pearls' into a single stream. It's difficult to be taking energy from several things at once, it's erratic and messy. I was trying to remedy this, to bring many nodes of energy into a single, powerful stream. The day after Galbatorix came I was called away. He must have come back and taken the notes or gone on with that mad plan of his. Either way I'm the one who gave him the knowledge to do so."

"Magpie," Oromis said, "notes or no notes Galbatorix would have found a way. That's why I came looking for you in Terim, I wanted to warn you. By the time Galbatorix got there he was already set on domination. If anything you fueled the fire, nothing more do you understand?"

Magpie sighed and refused to meet his gaze.

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><p>The quotes at the beginning of my chapters for this story will almost always never be any sort of pretentious. I'll quote video games if something is there that reflects what I have to say.<p> 


	4. A Friend in Need

A Friend in Need

"_I'm not sure about 'friend,' but we do have an awkward bond of sorts."-Jade Curtiss, Tales of the Abyss_

Magpie looked up at the slowly darkening sky as Eragon and Saphira left for other parts of the forest, then she looked down at Oromis. Their eyes met, and Magpie could tell without reading his mind that her longtime friend was trying to be happy that she was back. Magpie huffed and looked at the sky, the sun was beginning to set and she was tired.

"Very well then, the extra blankets are in the same place as last time correct?" she asked as she nonchalantly strolled into the cottage.

Oromis gave a small smile and told her yes, going in after her. They exchanged but a few words before Magpie curled up for the night, mostly they told each other that they were happy to see one another. Magpie apologized for how she had been, and said that she had just been ruffled by all that had happened since she had left. Oromis told her to stop blaming herself for the world and move on. Then they said goodnight and magpie drifted into sleep.

_Magpie, with a few muttered ancient words, cast the green stone upon the ground and watched it burst in a cloud of shimmering smoke. When the smoke cleared, she frowned as, yet again, nothing had happened. Then, she felt a presence coming up behind her; so furious that if it had a color it would be red. She turned and met Oromis with a defiant stare. _

_ "This is because I told that other elf to sod off isn't it?" she said. _

_ Oromis surveyed what had once been a clearing filled with wildflowers. Half the flowers were now dead, their energy obviously taken by Magpie for her experiment. _

_ "He was right you know." he said calmly. "You're standing here killing flowers for the sake of something impossible."_

_ "You don't know that." Magpie muttered._

_ "You can't bring those flowers back, just like you can't bring Liam back."_

_ "Don't you start!" Magpie shouted._

_ "If there were a way to bring back the dead surely we would have found it by now!" Oromis retorted. _

_ He huffed and pinched the bridge of his nose; time and time again Magpie made him lose himself. She was exceptionally good at it._

_ "I don't want to be the one to drag you out of here. But you must understand that we elves are much more connected to the energy around us and we feel the death of every flower in this field. You're greatly upsetting the balance-"_

_ "Oh please they're just flowers." Magpie said dismissively. "The sky's not going to come crumbling down because I killed a few measly plants."_

_ "Regardless. You're upsetting everyone, including me. And despite the fact that you cause me no end of trouble I consider you a friend and value that relationship. I don't want to lose it."_

_ Magpie's entire being seemed to wilt. She huffed and secured her satchel of stones around her belt before mounting Cloudspeed and nudging him into a slow walk._

_ "You know," she said as they walked back to Tel'naeír, "Perhaps you haven't found the way because you're afraid to go looking in the right places." _

_"Magpie! You must wake up!" _

Glaedr's booming voice resounded in Magpie's mind and she bolted awake.

_"Oromis needs you!"_ the dragon insisted, and he sounded distressed.

Magpie understood immediately and rushed to the rider's room. She had expected to find him in the grip of a seizure and although she had been right she was still dazed by the disturbing sight of her friend spasming. Still, she squared her wings and gripped him by the shoulders, holding him down and turning him to the side.

"Oromis!" she said, "Oromis come back to me."

Part of Magpie huffed, it sounded like she was uttering a spell only in the wrong language. However, her words must have had some effect because Oromis stilled, and a cold sweat broke out over his body.

"Magpie?" he said weakly.

"Oromis, how do you feel?" Magpie asked urgently as she helped him to sit up.

Oromis sighed and placed and hand over his chest, trying to slow his heart.

"How I normally feel. Weak, tired, lightheaded." he said.

Magpie hadn't expected him to be so forthcoming with her, but she guessed that he knew Glaedr had called her in to help where he could not.

"Shove over." she said.

"I beg your pardon-" Oromis couldn't finish as Magpie moved to get into bed with him. "No! Absolutely not!" he protested, "Friend or not this is simply out of the question! You cannot come into my bed…aaand you're already in…" he sighed, defeated and a little annoyed at her persistence. "Fine then…but you'd better not scratch me in the night."

"We sleep with our talons curled." Magpie said as she settled down.

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><p>The thing about Magpie is that she's pushy, far more pushy than Oromis is used to. It's not a Feather trait by any means, it's just a Magpie trait.<p>

This is short, but it would have looked weird lumped together with the next chapter.


	5. On the Nature of Trees and Flight

On the Nature of Trees and Flight

(Although neither of which is related to the other)

"_But the tree said nothing, because it was a tree, and trees don't talk. But just because they don't talk, doesn't mean they aren't listening."-'_The Muffin Tree' _by Amy Winfrey_

Magpie woke slowly the next morning, enjoying how warm the pillow she was pressing her face into was, how nice it smelled. Then she remembered last night and flopped onto the ground in a start. She quickly untangled herself from the sheets and remade the bed. She looked out the window and saw Oromis teaching Eragon some sort of teleportation spell. The boy uttered the words and then there was a crack, a flash of light and a rush of terribly hot air.

"Well done." Oromis said to his student who was steadying himself against a tree. Magpie made a mental note to scold her friend for being around such an explosive spell after last night's events. "Now can you tell me why the stone made that sound when it materialized on the grass?"

Magpie couldn't resist, Feathers rarely could.

"Because," she said, striding out of the house, "no two objects can occupy the same space. That bang was the sound of the stone displacing the air that had once occupied that particular section of Alagaesia."

Oromis smiled.

"Ah, good morning Magpie." he said.

"Good morning to you as well, although I trust it has been so for quite some time." She turned to Eragon, "How do you like his enthusiasm for getting up at the ass-crack of dawn?"

"Magpie." Oromis said, scowling slightly at her language.

Magpie only smirked. "Excuse my language I've been away far too long."

She left Oromis and his student to talking and went back into the hut, grabbing two apples from a bowl on the table, one for her and the other for Cloudspeed. She walked back out and held the fruit out to her avquid as she munched on hers, watching the master and student converse.

"Since you have declined Lord Fiolr's offer of Támerlein, will you and Saphira stay in Ellesméra much longer?" Oromis asked.

"I don't know Master," replied Eragon, "There is something more I wish to try with the Menoa tree, but if that does not succeed, then I suppose we will have no choice but to depart for the Varden empty handed."

Oromis nodded. "Before you leave, return here with Saphira one last time."

"Yes Master." Eragon said before going to mount Saphira and sailing high above the forest.

Magpie smirked and swallowed the last of her apple before swinging into Cloudspeed's saddle. Seeing this, Oromis approached her.

"Where are you going?" he catechized, "I know that look and it doesn't bode well for the environment when you get that look."

"Oh don't worry your pretty little head over it." Magpie smiled.

Oromis crossed his arms and huffed. If she wasn't going to tell him, he'd have to pull the information out of her. And so he attempted to read her mind; with little success because the moment he reached in he heard a terrible crashing noise and somebody screaming:

"_And you're rushing headlong! Out of control! And you think you're so strong! But there ain't no stopping no there's nothing you can do about it!"_1

"Augh!" Oromis cried, reflexively covering his ears and causing Glaedr to stir, smoke rising from his nostrils. Oromis waved a hand at him, signaling that he was alright. "What was that?" he demanded.

"My new security system. You elves have your eldritch music, I have rock and roll."

Before Oromis could even ask what that noise had to do with rolling rocks Magpie nudged Cloudspeed in the ribs and raced off into the forest.

Aviquids were fast, even in the deep woods; their three-toed feet helped them to grip the uneven ground where a horse would normally have broken its legs. And Cloudspeed's swiftness allowed Magpie to catch up with Eragon and Saphira even as they flew.

_"Why are you following us?" _the young rider's voice echoed in her mind.

_"Feathers have an insatiable curiosity."_ she replied.

She could sense Eragon's dislike at having a tagalong but he conceded; she did appear to be a friend of his master after all. Magpie arrived at the tree a moment after Saphira had touched down on a knuckle-root of the vast guardian tree. As she rode into the clearing, she noticed Eragon staring at her feet.

"My eyes are up here boy." she growled.

"I'm not looking at your feet; I'm looking at your anklets." Eragon replied.

Magpie dismounted and took a quick look at the brass bands.

"Ah, yes, they're slave circles." she replied as they approached the tree.

"You're a slave?" Eragon said, taken aback.

Magpie laughed, "Oh no. My people were. Quite a long time ago, of course, but we still honor the suffering our ancestors had to endure by wearing these rings on our feet."

Eragon nodded and walked over to the tree, exchanging a mental conversation with Saphira. Magpie studied her intently, the last female of the dragons. She had felt her heart break a little when Oromis had told her of the extinction of some of the most wondrous creatures she had ever come to know. Surprisingly, Magpie had dreamed of flying on dragonback ever since she learned they existed. The wings of Feathers weren't designed for soaring through clouds or surfing thermals. They could get in the air well enough, but it was hard work for them to maintain flight for more than an hour, and even then one would have to be in very good health to do so. Mostly what Feathers did was 'tread air', hover in one spot while they did something whether that be picking an apple from the high branches of a tree or shooting an arrow at an oncoming enemy. Magpie, like most Feathers, was an excellent archer, rivaling most elves in Du Weldenvarden. She had keen hearing and even keener sight. Feathers fletched their arrows with their own feathers, and it was said that this was why their arrows flew so true.

"Right, let's not waste time." Eragon said.

He ran up to the tree, holding out his arms to maintain balance. Magpie chuckled and took to the air, alighting upon a low hanging branch and gripping the thick bark with her talons. Saphira followed them, her own claws cracking the bark as she approached. She watched with calculating eyes as Eragon and Saphira closed their eyes, then, she was surprised to hear Eragon's voice inside her head. He was letting her listen to what he was saying. She couldn't help but feel flattered that he trusted her enough to let her in on what they were trying to do.

_"Please, listen to me, O great tree! I need your help! The entire land is at war, the elves have left the safety of Du Weldenvarden, and I do not have a sword to fight with! The werecat Solembum told me to look under the Menoa tree when I needed a weapon. Well, that time has come! Please, listen to me, O mother of the forest! Help me in my quest!"_

Magpie's mind was assaulted by images of a red dragon and his rider, Thorn and Murtagh she gleaned, as well as amassing armies and a few other images she didn't have the context to understand but assumed they, too, had something to do with this boy's story and the ills that plagued this land. The tree, however, did not respond. Then, Magpie was distracted from her thoughts by a bright light and roaring of flames. Saphira was biting, clawing and burning the tree with brilliant blue dragon fire. Then, the groan of wood against wood filled the area and the air grew chilled.

"Saphira stop!" Eragon cried.

Magpie leapt down from her branch but hadn't even touched the floor when a root rose up and snatched her by the leg, yanking her upside down, suspended in the air. She looked and saw that Eragon and Saphira had also been snared as had Cloudspeed who was braying in protest.

"The moral of the story is: don't talk to trees." she said as she swayed.

Then, a slow whispering voice overtook everyone's minds.

_"Who dares to bite me and burn me? Name yourselves, so I will know who it is I have killed."_

_ "I am Eragon Shadeslayer, and this is the dragon with whom I am bonded, Saphira Brightscales."_

_ "And I am Magpie Greyfeathers, and you, the elvish tree whom we mortals call Menoa, have my avquid ensnared and distressed. Let him go, he has done nothing but eat the moss which grows upon the soil your roots occupy, as any living creature would." _

Eragon looked at Magpie, slightly startled that she had addressed the tree so directly. But, to his surprise, Cloudspeed was let go. The avquid shook himself and then trotted back into the trees, a safe distance from the angry Forest Mother.

_"As it should be. Die well, Eragon Shadeslayer, Saphira Brightscales and Magpie Greyfeathers."_

_ "Wait!" _Eragon cried, _"I have not finished naming us!"_

_ "…Continue." _the tree said after a long pause.

_"I am the last free Dragon Rider in Alaga__ë__sia, and Saphira is the last female dragon in all of existence. We are perhaps the only ones who can defeat Galbatorix, the traitor who has destroyed the Riders and conquered half of Alaga__ë__sia."_

_ "And I am a traveler," _Magpie added, _"a servant of the Wind God Rhuk, back after many years traversing world beyond this one." _

_ "Why did you hurt me, dragon?" the tree asked. _

_ "Because you would not talk with us, elf-tree, and because Eragon has lost his sword and a werecat told him to look under the Menoa tree when he needed a weapon. We have looked and looked, but we cannot find it on our own."_

_ "Then you die in vain, dragon, for there is no weapon under my roots."_

Not really wanting to be torn in half, as the branch creeping towards her was suggesting, Magpie spoke up.

_"It's Brightsteel! The metal from the meteor…gah so primitive…star metal! Iron from the sky! A falling star! That kona smith uses it to forge rider's swords! That's what the boy wants!"_

Still dangling upside down, Magpie saw that a contingent of elves had gathered at the edge of the clearing. She waved hello with a wry smile on her face. She then realized that she was no longer privy to whatever conversation Eragon and the tree might be having. She didn't mind really, only hoped that it would end with her being released. Then of course she thought that Oromis would probably blame her for what had happened with the tree.

"If he gets that upset over flowers…" she mused.

She then watched with fascination as the roots of the tree parted and the earth rippled, and out of it came an oblong lump of what looked like corroded iron. At the same time, the branch holding her angle let go and she came crashing down upon her head with a loud thump and a flurry of feathers.

"Oh!" she cried, cradling her skull. She'd be surprised if she didn't have a lump in a few hours that she would be inclined to heal simply for the pain.

Feathers, as a general rule, didn't believe in healing anything other than a life-threatening wound. They insisted that while you were recovering you could think of ways to avoid winding up in the same situation. The same went for wards, you should spend more time training to be a better soldier than simply have magic do the work.

_"Here is your metal. Take it and go."_ the tree said to all of them.

That was all Magpie needed. She whistled for Cloudspeed swung onto his back before trotting into the forest. One her way she had to brush by the group of Elves that had gathered, in the crowd she spied someone familiar.

"Aren't you that Elf I told to sod off while I was experimenting?"

The Elf in question fixed her with a hard stare, obviously not pleased with her.

"Oh don't tell me you think _I_ was the one who pissed off the tree…" she grumbled, nudging Cloudspeed and trotting away.

* * *

><p>1 Headlong-Queen. Play this song. PLAY IT.<p>

It is not known exactly who Magpie was bonded with while in the service as a Traveler, however one can infer from her speech, that she was on Earth during our present day and probably in an English speaking, First World country. Either the UK or USA.

I did finally finish Inheritance tonight. He dragged on the last bits a little too much for my taste but I have thoroughly enjoyed the story.

Also, .


	6. A Most Grievous Mistake

A Most Grievous Miracle

"_Despair is only for those who see the end beyond all doubt. We do not."-Gandalf, the Lord of the Rings_

Eragon and Saphira landed in front of Oromis' hut the next morning to the sounds of a terrible argument.

"No! No! Absolutely not!" Magpie screeched, stalking after Oromis.

"My decision is final Magpie, like it or not I'm leaving." Oromis replied dully.

It was then that Eragon noticed his master was clothed in armor, a sword at his side.

"Master?" he questioned.

Oromis turned, completely ignoring Magpie who seemed as if she were so angry she would burst into flames any moment.

"Ah, Eragon, you're right on time."

"Master…what is all this?" Eragon asked.

Oromis donned his helmet.

"Glaedr and I are leaving Tel'naeír. It is time for Galbatorix to know that you and Saphira are not the last of the free riders. We are going to meet the rest of the elvish army at Gil'ead."

"And how do you think you will fare?!" Magpie shouted, raising her wings in fury, "Glaedr is missing a leg…I know you have three more you big brute! And you!" she turned on Oromis, "You can't so much as light a fire without falling over!"

Oromis' face twitched an almost imperceptible amount. He was trying desperately to control his mounting anger and not start a shouting match.

"There is a stone in the pommel of my sword. Every week or so two elves have come by to saturate it with magic. This has been going on for nearly a century, I have enough magic here to move a mountain if I so wished."

Eragon wanted to protest too, but he had a feeling that nothing could change Oromis' mind about this. Magpie, meanwhile, went under a nearby tree to sulk with Cloudspeed. Even as she watched Glaedr give over his heart-of-hearts she felt her own singular heart breaking. This was suicide and she seemed to be the only one who knew it.

"Magpie."

Magpie looked up; Oromis had mounted Glaedr and Eragon, Saphira. They were ready to leave.

"Take care of this place for me will you?" he said.

And with that they were off, leaving only a swirling of leaves in their wake. Magpie stood dumbfounded for a few moments. Then, she growled.

"You stupid fool."

She swung onto Cloudspeed and kicked him in the ribs. The avquid reared and took off at a lightning pace, zigzagging all through the forest until they were past the tree line and galloping West. Magpie rode harder than she ever had in her life, using her green stones filled with restorative energy to help Cloudspeed along. But she knew she could never keep up with Glaedr; his wingspan was far larger than Saphira's and enabled him to be so much faster. Magpie did the only thing she could, she prayed.

"Rhuk, I know you're out there and I know you can hear me. As one of your disciples, as a traveler, I ask you this: put the wind behind my steed, hasten our journey, for the life of someone close to me may soon be lost."

When she had finally neared Gil'ead she cast her mind out, searching for Oromis'. She felt him, but it was faint. It wasn't until she was on the fields outside the town that she saw him, or, rather, saw Glaedr, locked in combat with a smaller red dragon. Both creatures shone brilliantly and it pained her to see them tearing at each other. Then, she saw something that made hear heart shatter; Oromis had been struck, she saw him buckle in the saddle. Moments later, the red dragon bit down on Glaedr's neck and the great beast fell.

"No." Magpie whispered, her heart thudding in her ears and her eyes burning with oncoming tears.

She kicked Cloudspeed's ribs and galloped over to where they had hit the earth. But by the time she got there she could see it was too late. Glaedr was dead, or at least his body was, his neck snapped by the little red shrike. Oromis' back had been cleaved nearly in two by the red rider's sword, blood soaked his body. Magpie cradled his body in her arms, and wept.

"No, no, this can't be happening! Not again! Not after everything I worked for!"

Magpie's sorrow turned to rage and she began summoning energy, from herself, from her bag of gems, from everything surrounding her. The mass of energy grew and grew and finally she released it, the spell she had been working on since her husband died. Only this time, there was something more. She wasn't just speaking the words this time, she was pouring her emotions into the spell, letting her pain and sorrow and rage empower her speech. Then, the spell ended, the roaring of energy died abruptly, and the land seemed to gasp as for several yards around her it died. (And it would remain dead for years afterwards.)

However, the body in her arms stirred, and coughed blood onto the front of Magpie's tunic. The Feather gasped, and let her hand hover over Oromis' nose and mouth. Yes! He was breathing! His heart was beating, the wound on his back had closed! It was a miracle! Her spell had worked! But Magpie's happiness was short lived as her eyes traveled over to the body of Glaedr. She knew she did not have the power to bring him back; there was no energy left in her or the surrounding area. And she knew what pain Indvarn went through, she knew it was capable of driving them mad. What would Oromis say to her when he woke?

"Oh Cloud," she said softly as her avquid padded over to her, "what have I done?"

* * *

><p>I have no idea if that's how you spell Indvarn, or the made-up word I'm thinking of for a dragonless rider (or vice versa) But anyway, now we get to the real start of the story.<p> 


	7. Pushing Forward

Pushing Forward

_There's no such thing as a painless lesson. They just don't exist. Sacrifices are necessary. You can't gain anything without losing something first. Although if you can endure that pain and walk away from it, you'll find that you now have a heart strong enough to overcome any obstacle. Yeah, a heart made fullmetal. –Edward Elric, Fullmetal Alchemist_

Magpie hovered anxiously at Oromis' bedside as the healer did her work. They had gotten into Hedarth less than 48 hours ago and worry had set in. What if the spell she had performed was only temporary? What if she hadn't really brought Oromis back? What if he would be a shell? Would he wake up at all? Would he die again? Magpie didn't think she could handle that.

She had raced on Cloudspeed all through the night, helped along by stealing energy from a herd of passing camels. That's another thing Oromis would hate her for, she realized, killing a bunch of defenseless beasts. But she had to; it was the only way they had been able to make it to the border town in so short a time. And now Oromis was struggling with a rising temperature. She had at first thought it from their hastened ride across the Hadarac, the heat of the desert harsh upon them and Oromis weakened, but his fever had remained steady long after she had gotten him indoors.

So now all she could do was hover behind the dwarven healer and fret.

"There is nothing I can do." the healer said at last.

"You can't be serious!" Magpie screeched.

The healer glared harshly at her.

"The wound on his back is closed and there is no sign of infection. His fever stems from something else and I cannot cure it."

Magpie sighed and her wings drooped.

"I see." she said.

She somberly thanked the healer for her trouble and sat down by Oromis' bedside, watching every puff of breath he took, fearing it would be his last.

_ Oromis found himself standing in a vast void of grey. He couldn't remember what happened or how he got here, only that he hurt to his bones. He felt exhausted. He wanted to lie down and sleep but something kept telling him he couldn't, not yet at least. What was it he was supposed to be doing?_

_ "Oromis." _

_ The Rider looked around for the source of the voice._

_ "Oromis." it said again, this time adding his, long, true name at the end. _

_ Oromis felt as though he had been struck in the heart, only this time the wound buried itself into his soul, causing a cold, numbing feeling to spread throughout his body. He gasped, tears welling in his eyes and spilling onto his cheeks. He remembered now, the battle, his back being cleaved, Glaedr's life draining from his body a second later. _

_ "Child…" the voice said, and this time Oromis heard a faint rustling noise._

_ He looked up, body still shaking from the overwhelming feeling of loss, and beheld a strange but glorious creature. It looked like a snake, only it had four spindly limbs. Three pairs of wings cascaded down its feathered back and it looked at him from its crested head with glowing white eyes. It was unfathomably old, Oromis could sense this, and he could only stare in wonder. _

_ "Child of the elder forest…" the creature began, "do you know with whom you have an audience?"_

_ An image came to Oromis, of Magpie gleefully describing what her wind god looked like, and why she hung bits of glass from the trees to appease him._

_ "You are Rhuk…" Oromis said, part of him screaming that this moment was impossible._

_ "I am, and you are Oromis, the golden Rider of a bygone age." the god replied._

_ Oromis swallowed, trying to still his trembling. It was so cold here. Where was here? Where was he? He asked._

_ "You are on the shores of death, where the not alive but not yet passed on linger." Rhuk said, curling his long body around the shivering elf. "They wait for the Ghosting Nag to take them into the beyond."_

_ Oromis looked to where Rhuk was pointing his long snout and saw an emaciated grey horse hobbling through the mist. It spared them a single, tired glance with hollow eyes before disappearing into the endless fog that surrounded them. _

_ "If that is my fate, why have you come?" Oromis queried, "are you not a creature of the sky, and this a realm of the dead?" _

_ "Because my avatar has given you a chance to live again dear child." Rhuk answered, "Magpie Greyfeathers has worked a spell that has caused your heart to beat, your lungs to breathe. But it is only by your wish, and your wish alone, that her spell will be completed. It is up to you, if you wish to live again."_

_ Oromis was stunned; Magpie had finally done what she had been striving for all these years. Her spell, that horrid spell that went against everything a good magician stood for, had worked. And it had worked on him. Oromis wanted to say he was flattered, but he knew that the spell had only worked on him, not on Glaedr who by now must be trapped inside his eldunari, in mourning or quite possibly mad with grief. If he chose to woke, Oromis realized, he might end up regretting it. _

_ "Choosing to wake, of course," Rhuk said thoughtfully, "would wipe your memories of our conversations, of this place. Should you chose to wake, you will have to find the reason why you chose to do so all over again. Chose to let go, and the Ghosting Nag will take you into the ether."_

_ Oromis felt his heart wrench in his chest. To die meant to be free of pain, free of burden. But it meant he would never again see Glaedr, unless Eragon smashed the eldunari. And it would also mean breaking Magpie's heart. She had meant well, casting the spell, and probably hadn't been thinking about the consequences at the time. Oromis sighed and closed his eyes, could he truly live as an Indvarn? Could he live with what Magpie had done? Would he ever see Glaedr again? What life lay in store for him if he chose to wake? _

_ "Take your time, child," Rhuk said, "there is no rush in the mists of the Grey Shore."_

* * *

><p><em>Guh, shorter than I had originally planned, but it's an interlude of sorts. Plus I like saying Ghosting Nag and leaving cliffhangers in appropriate places. <em>


	8. The Cottage where the Wheat Grows

The Cottage where the Wheat Grows

_'I could tell you my adventures — beginning from this morning,' said Alice a little timidly: 'but it's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.'-Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland_

Adonis wiped his brow and leaned on his plow, giving soft words of encouragement to his avquid Strongheart, who nickered in return. Then, there was a screech. Adonis looked up and saw one of his hawks, Pilal, circling and screeching. Someone was approaching his farm. Adonis unhitched Strongheart and began making his way up to the cottage, stretching his wings out as he went. But when he got there, he nearly fell down in shock.

It was his sister-in-law Magpie; and behind her was Cloudspeed, pulling a caravan. She looked haggard, and had circles under her eyes.

"Adonis, good to see you still live here." she said with a small smile.

"Magpie!" Adonis gaped, "I-We thought you were dead! It's been-"

"A long time, I know. Can we come inside? We only just barely made it through the desert…"

"Of course you c-hold on, who is we?"

* * *

><p>With Cloudspeed and Strongheart munching hay in the stables and the caravan parked in the barn, Adonis was finally able to sit down and have dinner with his long lost relative. She began by telling him of everything that had happened since she had left in mourning to try and resurrect Liam. Adonis still kept a small portrait of his brother above the fireplace, adorned by a shrine of beads and flowers and a candle to light on Spirit Night. She told him tales of a far-off place called Alagaesia, a land of dragons and magic. She told him of her friend, who was now taking up the one guest bed in the cottage, a creature, Elves she called them, named Oromis who once rode a dragon named Glaedr into battle. That dragon was gone now; Magpie had managed to resurrect the Elf but not his dragon, for she lacked the energy.<p>

Adonis knew about magic, all Feathers could use it, although Adonis had never really harnessed his innate power; as a farmer he had never seen the reason to, there were rumors that magic made crops taste sour and Adonis didn't feel like putting it to the test.

Magpie went on to describe that she had been summoned by Rhuk, something Adonis was very interested in. He knew legends of great warriors who had been called upon by the wind god, but those were the legends of long ago, no one had been summoned in ages. Magpie described to him her adventures in a place called Earth, marveling him with her tales of their culture and technology. It was alien to him, and the fact that she had only been gone for three years in that world astounded him.

Then she had come back, to find her friend sick and his dragon wounded. And then they were killed, and she had brought the Elf back to life, somehow, and how she bought a caravan, loaded it with water and bread and journeyed across the perilous great desert and that is how eventually the elf came to be resting in the spare bedroom.

Adonis needed a moment to think.

"And you say he can't live without his dragon?" he asked.

"He won't die, but…his soul is damaged, I think. In losing Glaedr, Oromis lost a part of himself. He may not be the same when he wakes up he…" she looked down at her talons, "he may not want to live anymore."

"You knew this and yet you resurrected him?"

"I wasn't thinking! I couldn't lose him! Not after Liam! Not again!" Magpie shouted.

Then she glanced at the guest bedroom door, which was open enough that they could check on Oromis. He didn't even budge at the outburst. Magpie sighed and her wings drooped.

"You weren't thinking either when you went on that great pilgrimage to find the source of magic either. And you couldn't bring Liam back after all that."

"I-" Magpie started.

"Spare me the details of the spell, I'm but a simple farmer," Adonis replied sarcastically, "If he wakes up, he is my guest but your problem. Whatever issues you two have between each other are to be worked out by you, I'll have no part of this tangled web you've woven."

"I know." Magpie smiled grimly. "I do apologize for burdening you with this. I know you always liked the quiet life and here I am, loud and obnoxious as ever."

"You were never obnoxious." Adonis smirked. "The couch is here if you want it, I need to see to the avquids and then I'm off to bed. I get up when the sun does."

"Thank-you Adonis, I am in your debt."

"You will be when your friend is well again I can tell you that much." the farmer smirked.

* * *

><p>I debated a long time if I should post this or try to extend it but then I said 'fuck it, I do what I want I'm the author here' and so here we are.<p> 


End file.
